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            <div class="introduction">
                <p>You can learn how to fill in the details of a task work item in this topic. For information
                    about what tasks are and how they are used in agile processes, see <span sdata="link">
                        <a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/3edfa39e-8807-4dae-959b-84aa011624c6">Product
                            Backlog</a></span>. For information about how to create a task work item,
                    see <span sdata="link"><a href="WorkItemsandWorkflowGovDev.html">Work Items and Workflow
                        (GovDev)</a></span>. </p>
                <div class="caption"></div>
                <div class="tableSection">
                    <table width="50%" cellspacing="2" cellpadding="5" frame="lhs">
                        <tr>
                            <th>
                                <p><span class="label">In this topic</span> </p>
                            </th>
                            <th>
                                <p><span class="label">Related topics</span> </p>
                            </th>
                        </tr>
                        <tr>
                            <td>
                                <ul>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><a href="#CreateTasks">Defining a Task</a></p>
                                    </li>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><a href="#LinkingUseCases">Linking a Task to a Use Case</a></p>
                                    </li>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><a href="#LinkingTasks">Linking a Task to a Child Task</a></p>
                                    </li>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><a href="#AddDetails">Adding Details and Attachments to a Task</a>
                                        </p>
                                    </li>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><a href="#CloseTasks">Closing Completed Tasks</a></p>
                                    </li>
                                </ul>
                            </td>
                            <td>
                                <p><span class="label">Agile Processes</span> </p>
                                <ul>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><span sdata="link"><a href="Scrum.html">Scrum</a></span> </p>
                                    </li>
                                </ul>
                                <p><span class="label">Workbooks</span> </p>
                                <ul>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><span sdata="link"><a href="IterationBacklogWorkbook.html">Iteration Task Backlog Workbook
                                            </a></span> </p>
                                    </li>
                                </ul>
                                <p><span class="label">GovDev Reports (Reporting Services)</span> </p>
                                <ul>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><span sdata="link"><a href="BurndownandBurnRateReportGovDev.html">Burndown and Burn
                                            Rate Report (GovDev)</a></span> </p>
                                    </li>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><span sdata="link"><a href="RemainingWorkReport.html">Remaining Work Report</a></span> 
                                        </p>
                                    </li>
                                </ul>
                                <p><span class="label">Field Reference</span> </p>
                                <ul>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><span sdata="link"><a href="AssignmentsandWorkflowGovDev.html">Assignments and Workflow
                                            (GovDev)</a></span> </p>
                                    </li>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><span sdata="link"><a href="AreasandIterations.html">Areas and Iterations</a></span> 
                                        </p>
                                    </li>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><span sdata="link"><a href="PlanningRankingandPriorities.html">Planning, Ranking,
                                            and Priorities</a></span> </p>
                                    </li>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><span sdata="link"><a href="EffortSchedulesandTrackingHoursGovDev.html">Effort, Schedules,
                                            and Tracking Hours (GovDev)</a></span> </p>
                                    </li>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><span sdata="link"><a href="TitlesIDsDescriptionsandHistoryGovDev.html">Titles, IDs,
                                            Descriptions, and History (GovDev)</a></span> </p>
                                    </li>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><span sdata="link"><a href="LinkingWorkItemsGovDev.html">Linking Work Items (GovDev)
                                            </a></span> </p>
                                    </li>
                                    <li>
                                        <p><span sdata="link"><a href="Attachments.html">Attachments</a></span> </p>
                                    </li>
                                </ul>
                            </td>
                        </tr>
                    </table>
                </div>
                <p><span class="label">Required Permissions</span> </p>
                <p>To view a task, you must be a member of the <span class="ui">Readers</span> group
                    or your <span class="ui">View work items in this node</span> must be set to <span
                        class="ui">Allow</span>. To create or modify a task, you must be a member of
                    the <span class="ui">Contributors</span> group or your <span class="ui">Edit work items
                        in this node</span> permissions must be set to <span class="ui">Allow</span>.
                    For more information, see <span sdata="link"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/8f1f5f39-ed0f-4539-bee1-7e7e77bb5728">
                        Managing Permissions</a></span>.</p>
            </div>
            <a name="CreateTasks" />
            <h1 class="heading"><span onclick="ExpandCollapse(sectionToggle0)" style="cursor: default;"
                onkeypress="ExpandCollapse_CheckKey(sectionToggle0, event)" tabindex="0">
                <img id="sectionToggle0" class="toggle" name="toggleSwitch" src="../icons/collapse_all.gif" />Defining
                a Task</span> </h1>
            <div id="sectionSection0" class="section" name="collapseableSection" style="">
                <p>A task communicates the need to do some work. Each team member can define tasks to
                    represent the work that they need to accomplish. For example, a developer can define
                    development tasks to implement Use Cases. A tester can define test tasks to assign
                    the job of writing and running test cases. A task can also be used to signal regressions
                    or to suggest that exploratory testing should be performed. Also, a team member
                    can define a task to represent generic work for the project. </p>
                <p>The form for task work items stores data in the fields and tabs that are shown in
                    the following illustration:</p>
                <img alt="Work Item Form for Task" src="../art/ProcGuid_NewTask.png" /><p>When you define
                    a task, all fields are optional except for <span class="ui">Title</span>.</p>
                <h3 class="procedureSubHeading">To define a single task</h3>
                <div class="subSection">
                    <ol>
                        <li>
                            <p>In the top section of the work item form for a task, specify one or more of the following
                                types of information:</p>
                            <ul>
                                <li>
                                    <p>In <span class="ui">Title</span>, verify and, if necessary, update the title to better
                                        define the area of work to be accomplished. </p>
                                    <p>The title provides a concise overview of the task to be completed. The title should
                                        be descriptive enough to allow the team to understand what area of the product is
                                        affected and how it is affected.</p>
                                </li>
                                <li>
                                    <p>In the <span class="ui">Activity</span> list, click the type of activity that represents
                                        the task to be accomplished. </p>
                                </li>
                                <li>
                                    <p>In the <span class="ui">Assigned To</span> list, click the appropriate owner for the
                                        task.</p>
                                    <div class="alert">
                                        <table width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
                                            <tr>
                                                <th align="left">
                                                    <img class="note" alt="Note" title="Note" src="../icons/alert_note.gif" /><b>Note
                                                    </b></th>
                                            </tr>
                                            <tr>
                                                <td>
                                                    <p>You can assign work items only to members of the <span class="ui">Contributors</span> 
                                                        group. </p>
                                                </td>
                                            </tr>
                                        </table>
                                    </div>
                                    <p>If you leave the task unassigned, it is automatically assigned to you. </p>
                                    <div class="alert">
                                        <table width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
                                            <tr>
                                                <th align="left">
                                                    <img class="note" alt="Note" title="Note" src="../icons/alert_note.gif" /><b>Note
                                                    </b></th>
                                            </tr>
                                            <tr>
                                                <td>
                                                    <p>You can assign only one resource to each task. If more than one team member will
                                                        work on the same task, divide it into separate tasks or subtasks, and assign a single
                                                        team member to each. </p>
                                                </td>
                                            </tr>
                                        </table>
                                    </div>
                                </li>
                                <li>
                                    <p>In <span class="ui">Rank</span>, type a number or leave this field blank.</p>
                                    <p>In general, teams work on items that have a lower value in this field first.</p>
                                </li>
                                <li>
                                    <p>In the <span class="ui">Priority</span> list, click a value to specify the importance
                                        of the task on a scale of 1 to 4, 1 being most important.</p>
                                    <p>The default value is 2. </p>
                                </li>
                                <li>
                                    <p>In the <span class="ui">Area</span> and <span class="ui">Iteration</span> lists, click
                                        the appropriate area and iteration, or leave these fields blank to be assigned later
                                        during a planning meeting. </p>
                                    <div class="alert">
                                        <table width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
                                            <tr>
                                                <th align="left">
                                                    <img class="note" alt="Note" title="Note" src="../icons/alert_note.gif" /><b>Note
                                                    </b></th>
                                            </tr>
                                            <tr>
                                                <td>
                                                    <p>The project administrator for each team project defines area and iteration paths
                                                        for that project so that the team can track progress by those designations. For
                                                        more information, see <span sdata="link"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/6b0d2df4-c638-4637-af93-86db64ca73ab">
                                                            Create and Modify Areas and Iterations</a></span>.</p>
                                                </td>
                                            </tr>
                                        </table>
                                    </div>
                                </li>
                                <li>
                                    <p>In <span class="ui">Original Estimate</span>, type a number that represents the hours
                                        of work that the task will take to complete. </p>
                                    <div class="alert">
                                        <table width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
                                            <tr>
                                                <th align="left">
                                                    <img class="note" alt="Important note" title="Important note" src="../icons/alert_caution.gif" /><b>Important
                                                    </b></th>
                                            </tr>
                                            <tr>
                                                <td>
                                                    <p>If you subdivide a task into subtasks, specify hours for the subtasks only. In Team
                                                        Foundation reports, hours that you define for the subtask are rolled up as summary
                                                        values for the parent task and the Use Case. If you assign hours in both place,
                                                        hours will be counted twice in those reports that track hours. For information about
                                                        how to correct this condition, see <span sdata="link"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/09e8e02d-9ecb-4012-9ee0-cebb89372096">
                                                            Address Inaccuracies Published for Summary Values</a></span>.</p>
                                                </td>
                                            </tr>
                                        </table>
                                    </div>
                                </li>
                                <li>
                                    <p>In <span class="ui">Completed</span>, type 0 to specify that no work has been completed.
                                    </p>
                                </li>
                                <li>
                                    <p>In <span class="ui">Remaining</span>, type the same value that you specified in <span
                                        class="ui">Original Estimate</span>.</p>
                                    <p>If your team is using the <span class="ui">Original Estimate</span>, <span class="ui">
                                        Completed</span>, and <span class="ui">Remaining</span> fields to determine team
                                        capacity, burndown, and burn rate, you will want to update the <span class="ui">Completed
                                        </span> and <span class="ui">Remaining</span> fields as you perform the work. Also,
                                        these fields are synchronized with Office Project, which you can use to schedule
                                        the project plan. For more information, see <span sdata="link"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/be5cef4f-755f-4ffe-8dd7-876d1e02c330">
                                            Scheduling Tasks and Assigning Resources Using Microsoft Project</a></span>.
                                    </p>
                                </li>
                            </ul>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>(Optional) On the<span class="ui"> Details</span> tab, specify the following types
                                of information:</p>
                            <ul>
                                <li>
                                    <p>In <span class="ui">Description</span>, type as much detail as you want to describe
                                        the work to be performed. </p>
                                </li>
                                <li>
                                    <p>In <span class="ui">History</span>, type comments that you want to capture as part
                                        of the historical record. Every time that a team member updates the work item, its
                                        history shows the date of the change, the team member who made the change, and the
                                        fields that changed.</p>
                                </li>
                            </ul>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>(Optional) Link the task to other work items, such as Use Cases of child Tasks.
                                For more information about these activities, see the following sections in this
                                topic:</p>
                            <ul>
                                <li>
                                    <p><a href="#LinkingUseCases">Linking a Task to a Use Case</a></p>
                                </li>
                                <li>
                                    <p><a href="#LinkingTasks">Linking a Task to a Child Task</a></p>
                                </li>
                            </ul>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>Click
                                <img alt="Save" src="../art/Icon_saveWIT.gif" />
                                <span class="ui">Save Work Item</span>. </p>
                            <div class="alert">
                                <table width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
                                    <tr>
                                        <th align="left">
                                            <img class="note" alt="Note" title="Note" src="../icons/alert_note.gif" /><b>Note
                                            </b></th>
                                    </tr>
                                    <tr>
                                        <td>
                                            <p>After you save the task, the identifier appears under the work item toolbar.</p>
                                        </td>
                                    </tr>
                                </table>
                            </div>
                        </li>
                    </ol>
                </div>
            </div>
            <a name="LinkingUseCases" />
            <h1 class="heading"><span onclick="ExpandCollapse(sectionToggle1)" style="cursor: default;" onkeypress="ExpandCollapse_CheckKey(sectionToggle1, event)" tabindex="0">
                <img id="sectionToggle1" class="toggle" name="toggleSwitch" src="../icons/collapse_all.gif" />Linking
                a Task to a Use Case</span> </h1>
            <div id="sectionSection1" class="section" name="collapseableSection" style="">
                <p>You link tasks to a use case to track the progress of work that has occurred to
                    complete that use case. After you define a task, you can link it to the Use Case
                    that it implements by using the following procedure.</p>
                <h3 class="procedureSubHeading">To link a task to an existing Use Case </h3>
                <div class="subSection">
                    <ol>
                        <li>
                            <p>On the <span class="ui">Implementation</span> tab, click
                                <img alt="Add Links" src="../art/Icon_addLinks.gif" />
                                <span class="ui">Link to</span>. </p>
                            <p>The <span class="ui">Add Link to Task </span> dialog box opens.</p>
                            <img alt="Link task to Use Case dialog box" 
                                src="../art/ProcGuid_LinkToUseCase.png" /><p>
                                Leave the <span class="ui">Link Type</span> set to <span class="ui">Parent</span>,
                                which is the only type of link that is supported for links that you add on the <span
                                    class="ui">Implementation</span> tab. </p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>Click <span class="ui">Browse</span>.</p>
                            <p>The <span class="ui">Choose Linked Work Items</span> dialog box appears.</p>
                            <img alt="Choose linked work items dialog box" src="../art/WIT_ChooseLinked.png" />
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>In <span class="ui">Saved query</span>, click the <span class="ui">Use Case 
                                Planning</span> or  <span class="ui">Open Use Cases
                                </span> team queries, and then click <span class="ui">Find</span>.</p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>Select the check box next to the Use Case you want to link to the task.</p>
                            <p>For more information, see <span sdata="link"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/962b01e8-9b2f-46bf-b13e-15020f35b665">
                                Find Work Items to Link or Import</a></span>. </p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>(Optional) In <span class="ui">Comment</span>, type a description for the tasks to
                                which you are linking. </p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>Click <span class="ui">OK</span>. </p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>Click
                                <img alt="Save" src="../art/Icon_saveWIT.gif" />
                                <span class="ui">Save Work Item</span>. </p>
                            <div class="alert">
                                <table width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
                                    <tr>
                                        <th align="left">
                                            <img class="note" alt="Note" title="Note" src="../icons/alert_note.gif" /><b>Note
                                            </b></th>
                                    </tr>
                                    <tr>
                                        <td>
                                            <p>Both the task and the Use Case that you linked are updated.</p>
                                        </td>
                                    </tr>
                                </table>
                            </div>
                        </li>
                    </ol>
                </div>
            </div>
            <a name="LinkingTasks" />
            <h1 class="heading"><span onclick="ExpandCollapse(sectionToggle1)" style="cursor: default;" onkeypress="ExpandCollapse_CheckKey(sectionToggle1, event)" tabindex="0">
                <img id="Img1" class="toggle" name="toggleSwitch" src="../icons/collapse_all.gif" />Linking
                a Task to a Child Task</span> </h1>
            <div id="Div1" class="section" name="collapseableSection" style="">
                <p>You link tasks to a use case to track the progress of work that has occurred to
                    complete that use case. After you define a task, you can link it to the Use Case
                    that it implements by using the following procedure.</p>
                <h3 class="procedureSubHeading">To link a task to an existing Task </h3>
                <div class="subSection">
                    <ol>
                        <li>
                            <p>On the <span class="ui">Implementation</span> tab, click
                                <img alt="Add Links" src="../art/Icon_addLinks.gif" />
                                <span class="ui">Link to</span>. </p>
                            <p>The <span class="ui">Add Link to Task </span> dialog box opens.</p>
                            <img alt="Link task to Use Case dialog box" 
                                src="../art/ProcGuid_LinkToChildTask.png" /><p>
                                Leave the <span class="ui">Link Type</span> set to <span class="ui">Child</span> links that you add on the <span
                                    class="ui">Implementation</span> tab. </p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>Click <span class="ui">Browse</span>.</p>
                            <p>The <span class="ui">Choose Linked Work Items</span> dialog box appears.</p>
                            <img alt="Choose linked work items dialog box" src="../art/WIT_ChooseLinked.png" />
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>In <span class="ui">Saved query</span>, click the <span class="ui">Active Tasks
                                </span> team query, and then click <span class="ui">Find</span>.</p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>Select the check box next to the Use Case you want to link to the task.</p>
                            <p>For more information, see <span sdata="link"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/962b01e8-9b2f-46bf-b13e-15020f35b665">
                                Find Work Items to Link or Import</a></span>. </p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>(Optional) In <span class="ui">Comment</span>, type a description for the tasks to
                                which you are linking. </p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>Click <span class="ui">OK</span>. </p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>Click
                                <img alt="Save" src="../art/Icon_saveWIT.gif" />
                                <span class="ui">Save Work Item</span>. </p>
                            <div class="alert">
                                <table width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
                                    <tr>
                                        <th align="left">
                                            <img class="note" alt="Note" title="Note" src="../icons/alert_note.gif" /><b>Note
                                            </b></th>
                                    </tr>
                                    <tr>
                                        <td>
                                            <p>Both the task and the Use Case that you linked are updated.</p>
                                        </td>
                                    </tr>
                                </table>
                            </div>
                        </li>
                    </ol>
                </div>
            </div>
            <a name="AddDetails" />
            <h1 class="heading"><span onclick="ExpandCollapse(sectionToggle3)" style="cursor: default;"
                onkeypress="ExpandCollapse_CheckKey(sectionToggle3, event)" tabindex="0">
                <img id="sectionToggle3" class="toggle" name="toggleSwitch" src="../icons/collapse_all.gif" />Adding
                Details and Attachments to a Task</span> </h1>
            <div id="sectionSection3" class="section" name="collapseableSection" style="">
                <p>You can add information to a task that supports its implementation. You add details
                    to tasks in the following ways:</p>
                <ul>
                    <li>
                        <p>Type information in the <span class="ui">Description</span> or <span class="ui">History
                            </span> field.</p>
                    </li>
                    <li>
                        <p>Attach a file.</p>
                        <p>For example, you can attach an e-mail thread, a document, an image, a log file, or
                            another type of file. </p>
                    </li>
                    <li>
                        <p>Add a hyperlink to a Web site or to a file that is stored on a server or Web site.
                        </p>
                    </li>
                </ul>
                <h3 class="procedureSubHeading">To add details to a task</h3>
                <div class="subSection">
                    <ol>
                        <li>
                            <p>Click the <span class="ui">Details</span> tab. </p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>In <span class="ui">Description</span>, type information.</p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>In <span class="ui">History</span>, type information.</p>
                            <p>You can format information to provide emphasis or capture a bulleted list. For more
                                information, see <span sdata="link"><a href="TitlesIDsDescriptionsandHistoryGovDev.html">
                                    Titles, IDs, Descriptions, and History (GovDev)</a></span>.</p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>Click
                                <img alt="Save" src="../art/Icon_saveWIT.gif" />
                                <span class="ui">Save Work Item</span>. </p>
                        </li>
                    </ol>
                </div>
                <h3 class="procedureSubHeading">To add an attachment to a task</h3>
                <div class="subSection">
                    <ol>
                        <li>
                            <p>On the <span class="ui">Attachments </span> tab, perform one of the following actions:
                            </p>
                            <ul>
                                <li>
                                    <p>Drag a file into the attachment area.</p>
                                </li>
                                <li>
                                    <p>Click
                                        <img alt="Paste" src="../art/Icon_pasteWIT.gif" />
                                        or press CTRL-V to paste a file that you have copied.</p>
                                </li>
                                <li>
                                    <p>Click
                                        <img alt="Add Attachment" src="../art/Icon_addAttachment.gif" />
                                        <span class="ui">Add</span>, and then click <span class="ui">Browse</span>. In the
                                        <span class="ui">Attachment</span> dialog box, type or browse to the name of the
                                        file that you want to attach. </p>
                                    <p>(Optional) In the <span class="ui">Comment</span> box, you can optionally type additional
                                        information about the attachment. To close the <span class="ui">Attachment </span> 
                                        dialog box, click <span class="ui">OK</span>.</p>
                                </li>
                            </ul>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>Click
                                <img alt="Save" src="../art/Icon_saveWIT.gif" />
                                <span class="ui">Save Work Item</span>.</p>
                        </li>
                    </ol>
                </div>
            </div>
            <a name="CloseTasks" />
            <h1 class="heading"><span onclick="ExpandCollapse(sectionToggle4)" style="cursor: default;"
                onkeypress="ExpandCollapse_CheckKey(sectionToggle4, event)" tabindex="0">
                <img id="sectionToggle4" class="toggle" name="toggleSwitch" src="../icons/collapse_all.gif" />Closing
                Completed Tasks</span> </h1>
            <div id="sectionSection4" class="section" name="collapseableSection" style="">
                <p>When you complete a task, you change its <span class="ui">State</span> from <a
                    href="#Active">Active</a>to <a href="#Closed">Closed</a>state. </p>
                <h3 class="procedureSubHeading">To close a task</h3>
                <div class="subSection">
                    <ol>
                        <li>
                            <p>Open the task.</p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>In the <span class="ui">State</span> list, click <span class="ui">Closed</span>.
                            </p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>In the <span class="ui">Reason</span> list, click the reason why you are closing the
                                task.</p>
                            <p>For more information about each option in the <span class="ui">Reason</span> list,
                                see <a href="#ActiveClosed">Active to Closed</a>later in this topic.</p>
                        </li>
                        <li>
                            <p>Click
                                <img alt="Save" src="../art/Icon_saveWIT.gif" />
                                <span class="ui">Save Work Item</span>.</p>
                        </li>
                    </ol>
                </div>
                <div class="caption"></div>
                <div class="tableSection">
                    <table width="50%" cellspacing="2" cellpadding="5" frame="lhs">
                        <tr>
                            <td>
                                <p><span class="label">Typical workflow progression</span>:</p>
                                <ul>
                                    <li>
                                        <p>A team member creates a task in the <a href="#Active">Active</a>state with a default
                                            reason of New.</p>
                                    </li>
                                    <li>
                                        <p>A team member changes the state from <a href="#ActiveClosed">Active to Closed</a>
                                            indicating that the task has been completed.</p>
                                    </li>
                                </ul>
                                <p><span class="label">Additional workflow transitions states</span>:</p>
                                <ul>
                                    <li>
                                        <p>A team member determines that the task is not relevant and changes the state from
                                            <a href="#ActiveClosed">Active to Closed</a>.</p>
                                    </li>
                                    <li>
                                        <p>A team member determines that the task was closed in error and reactivates the task,
                                            changing the state from <a href="#ClosedActive">Closed to Active</a>.</p>
                                    </li>
                                </ul>
                            </td>
                            <td>
                                <p><span class="label">Task State Diagram</span> </p>
                                <img alt="Task state diagram" src="../art/ProcGuide_Task.png" /></td>
                        </tr>
                    </table>
                </div>
                <a name="Active" />
                <h3 class="subHeading">Active</h3>
                <div class="subsection">
                    <p>The task remains in the active state as long as it is being implemented. The team
                        member who has been assigned the task tracks the level of effort of the task by
                        updating it with <span class="ui">Completed</span> and <span class="ui">Remaining
                        </span> hours. </p>
                    <a name="ActiveClosed" />
                    <h4 class="subHeading">From Active to Closed</h4>
                    <div class="subsection">
                        <p>When you close a task, you must specify one of the following reasons why you are
                            closing it: </p>
                        <div class="caption"></div>
                        <div class="tableSection">
                            <table width="50%" cellspacing="2" cellpadding="5" frame="lhs">
                                <tr>
                                    <th>
                                        <p>Reason</p>
                                    </th>
                                    <th>
                                        <p>When to use</p>
                                    </th>
                                    <th>
                                        <p>Additional actions to take</p>
                                    </th>
                                </tr>
                                <tr>
                                    <td>
                                        <p><span class="ui">Completed</span> (default)</p>
                                    </td>
                                    <td>
                                        <p>When you complete the work that was required to implement the functionality that
                                            was defined in the task. </p>
                                    </td>
                                    <td>
                                        <p>None.</p>
                                    </td>
                                </tr>
                                <tr>
                                    <td>
                                        <p><span class="ui">Deferred</span> </p>
                                    </td>
                                    <td>
                                        <p>When the work cannot be implemented in the current iteration. You might defer a task
                                            because the team does not have enough time or because blocking issues prevent work.
                                        </p>
                                    </td>
                                    <td>
                                        <p>Update the Iteration field to the correct iteration in which the task will be implemented,
                                            or set it to the backlog.</p>
                                    </td>
                                </tr>
                                <tr>
                                    <td>
                                        <p><span class="ui">Obsolete</span> </p>
                                    </td>
                                    <td>
                                        <p>When the work the task represents no longer contributes to completion of the product.
                                        </p>
                                    </td>
                                    <td>
                                        <p>None.</p>
                                    </td>
                                </tr>
                                <tr>
                                    <td>
                                        <p><span class="ui">Cut </span> </p>
                                    </td>
                                    <td>
                                        <p>When the functionality for the task is removed from the product. </p>
                                    </td>
                                    <td>
                                        <p>None.</p>
                                    </td>
                                </tr>
                            </table>
                        </div>
                        <p>The following data fields are automatically captured during the transition from active
                            to closed:</p>
                        <ul>
                            <li>
                                <p><span class="label">Closed By</span>: Name of the team member who closed the work
                                    item.</p>
                            </li>
                            <li>
                                <p><span class="label">Closed Date</span>: Date and time when the work item was closed,
                                    as recorded by the server clock.</p>
                            </li>
                            <li>
                                <p><span class="label">State Change Date</span>: Date and time when the state of the
                                    work item was changed.</p>
                            </li>
                        </ul>
                    </div>
                </div>
                <a name="Closed" />
                <h3 class="subHeading">Closed</h3>
                <div class="subsection">
                    <p>Any team member can reactivate a closed task if it comes back into scope.</p>
                    <a name="ClosedActive" />
                    <h4 class="subHeading">From Closed to Active</h4>
                    <div class="subsection">
                        <p>When you reactivate a task, the <span class="ui">Assigned To</span> field is automatically
                            populated with the name of the team member who closed the task. The <span class="ui">
                                Reason</span> field is set to <span class="ui">Reactivated</span>. </p>
                        <div class="caption"></div>
                        <div class="tableSection">
                            <table width="50%" cellspacing="2" cellpadding="5" frame="lhs">
                                <tr>
                                    <th>
                                        <p>Reason</p>
                                    </th>
                                    <th>
                                        <p>When to use</p>
                                    </th>
                                    <th>
                                        <p>Additional actions to take</p>
                                    </th>
                                </tr>
                                <tr>
                                    <td>
                                        <p><span class="ui">Reactivated</span> </p>
                                    </td>
                                    <td>
                                        <p>When the task is now necessary because of a change in functionality. </p>
                                    </td>
                                    <td>
                                        <p>Review the information and linked work items that are defined for the task to determine
                                            whether any data must be updated. </p>
                                    </td>
                                </tr>
                            </table>
                        </div>
                        <p>The following data is automatically captured during the transition from closed to
                            active:</p>
                        <ul>
                            <li>
                                <p><span class="label">Activated By</span>: Name of the team member who reactivated
                                    the work item.</p>
                            </li>
                            <li>
                                <p><span class="label">Activated Date</span>: Date and time when the work item was reactivated,
                                    as recorded by the server clock.</p>
                            </li>
                            <li>
                                <p><span class="label">State Change Date</span>: Date and time when the state of the
                                    work item was changed.</p>
                            </li>
                        </ul>
                    </div>
                </div>
            </div>
            <h1 class="heading"><span onclick="ExpandCollapse(seeAlsoToggle)" style="cursor: default;"
                onkeypress="ExpandCollapse_CheckKey(seeAlsoToggle, event)" tabindex="0">
                <img id="seeAlsoToggle" class="toggle" name="toggleSwitch" src="../icons/collapse_all.gif" />See
                Also</span> </h1>
            <div id="seeAlsoSection" class="section" name="collapseableSection" style="">
                <h4 class="subHeading">Concepts</h4>
                <div class="seeAlsoStyle"><span sdata="link"><a href="UseCaseGovDev.html">Use Case
                    (GovDev)</a></span> </div>
                <h4 class="subHeading">Other Resources</h4>
                <div class="seeAlsoStyle"><span sdata="link"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/d02ac295-f0dc-47d7-b5a3-3713b7f6bcf7">
                    Plan the Sprint</a></span> </div>
                <div class="seeAlsoStyle"><span sdata="link"><a href="GovDevv1.0.html">
                    GovDev for TFS 2010 v1.0</a></span> </div>
                <div class="seeAlsoStyle"><span sdata="link"><a href="WorkItemsandWorkflowGovDev.html">
                    Work Items and Workflow (GovDev)</a></span> </div>
            </div>
        </div>
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